Girl Talk
by celticgina
Summary: Some things are best discussed outside the office. Especially Men. Please Review!


**We never see the women together. It was time to correct that.**

**DISCLAIMER: Guess what I want for my birthday? Until then…..not mine!**

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In the end it was their body language that tipped her over the edge. Special Agent Teresa Lisbon was a good leader. Her unit had an impressive close ratio, even with their unconventional methods. Her team was loyal to her and to each other. She and Cho went back a long way and had each other's backs. It was a nice constant. Jane was annoying, infuriating and too freeking good looking for his own good. He was also an asset in his own quirky way. Rigsby was like a lot of cops she knew; Big, strong and straight arrow. An arson specialist could put tiny pieces together and come up with the whole. It was helpful. Van Pelt was a little too nervous, but starting to come into her own.

Lisbon had just finished yet another uncomfortable session with Minelli on the subject of Patrick Jane's unconventional methods. It put her in a bad mood and as she strode back toward her office, she saw them again. Van Pelt was sitting on the edge of a desk looking up at Rigsby smiling at him. He didn't even know what hit him when she smiled. He leaned in toward her and said something that made her giggle. She had a file in her hand and for all the world looked like a coed smiling up at a football star. His hands were on his hips, and he looked casual and in control. Lisbon could have put that picture on any college catalogue, if you took the guns and badges off their hips.

Oh Crap! Lisbon was hoping to not have that conversation. But it looked like springtime had hit her little world. She knew how Rigsby felt about Van Pelt, hell, the whole building did. But clearly, Van Pelt was having an increasingly difficult time keeping her distance. Lisbon also knew what a dangerous road Grace was heading toward. It was time.

"Rigsby? Is that report ready for the D.A.? I don't want them kicking it back for not being thorough and complete." That should hold him for a while. Like most cops he loathed paperwork. As he walked away like a kid heading for the dentist chair, Lisbon took advantage of the quiet and motioned to Van Pelt to follow her into her office.

"Van Pelt, do you have plans tonight?"

Her question startled the younger agent. "Um, no?"

"OK then. After everyone leaves, would you be willing to meet me at Jake's for dinner? Just us. Don't mention it to the guys. Think of it as a girl's thing"

Grace was a little confused. She admired Lisbon tremendously and saw her as a role model. Not just because she was a woman who succeeded in the male dominated world of law enforcement, but because she did it right. Grace had been a cop before she went on the CBI. She knew other women cops. Times had changed. Women occupied all ranks. But they all walked a fine line. Either you tried to be 'one of the boys', and they assumed things about your sexuality. Or you played cute and dated. It was hard to be in the middle. The prettier you were the tougher it was. It wasn't right and it wasn't fair. But there it was. Maybe the next generation of women would have it easier.

Lisbon was tough, strong and still feminine. Grace had heard the rumors about her and an affair. It could have been a career ender. For most women, it usually was. Never mind that the guy got punched in the arm and congratulated. The woman paid the piper.

At 6 that night they met at Jake's. It was a quiet little place to have a drink and get a bite. Nothing too fancy, but as a woman, you and a friend could go have a cocktail without some jerk assuming you wanted their company. Grace liked it.

Clearly, Lisbon had an agenda. She had never asked Van Pelt to meet her like this. Grace had spent the day running over her behavior and work in her mind. Nothing of note popped up at her. She was genuinely puzzled.

After the waitress took their order, they each sipped their drink in silence for a moment. Finally Lisbon spoke up.

"Look, I asked to speak to you here rather than at the office deliberately. What I want to say is off the record and not just as your supervisor"

"Ok, understood", even though she didn't.

"Years ago, when I first came onto this job, I made a mistake. It wasn't even an unusual one. It happens to so many women in all walks of life. But in ours, it can be devastating to our careers. I slept with a co-worker. To make it worse, he was a supervisor and yeah, even stupider, he was married. I was a walking cliché"

Grace nodded slowly, not sure how to respond. She was shocked that Lisbon was sharing like this.

"My judgment got clouded and I was unable to do my job effectively. I began to worry about his safety. I was distracted and missed details during investigations. It ended badly and followed me for a long time. Cops have memories like elephants and can crush a reputation just as effectively. Do you understand what I am saying here?"

Grace nodded again, comprehension and embarrassment flooding her.

"Look, Wayne Rigsby is a fine man and great cop. I trust him completely, even after that hypnosis debacle. I know how he feels about you. You would have to be blind to miss it. I know you are attracted to him. He's a good looking guy. I am sure he would treat you like a queen. But those rules are there for a reason. They are there to protect you. This job is hard enough without throwing a romance into it."

"I haven't gone out with him. I am trying not to encourage him"

"I know that. He's besotted with you. You don't have to encourage him. It would be really tempting for you to go there. He's convenient, understands your job and won't bitch about the hours. Dating sucks under the best of circumstances. Trying to date when you are a cop and woman? It's almost impossible"

Grace laughed softly despite herself. She had been having a horrible time dating. Most guys were either turned off by her job or the hours. Those that could stand the hours were few and far between. She didn't' even want to think about the jerks that were turned on by dating a cop. She wasn't sure if was worse because she was pretty.

"Officially, in the office, I have to remind you about policies here. Out here at the bar, we are just a couple of chicks talking about men. We are equals. I'm just sharing the wisdom of more years on the dating circuit"

Van Pelt was happy to see the waitress and another drink. Lisbon's words rang true, even if she didn't want to hear them. She took another sip for courage and decided to throw it all on the table.

"Equals? Just women talking about men? OK, what about Jane? Whether or not he wants to be, he is into you. And when you two are together, there is tension. It's like watching an old Tracey-Hepburn movie right there in front of you. There are sparks"

Lisbon almost choked on her drink. She had felt the electricity that had been slowly going up over time. She didn't think anyone else saw it.

"Sparks? I don't think so"

"Yeah? Truth now. You would have to be dead not to feel it. I think it frightens him though. And honestly, he's not an agent, so you could date"

Lisbon suddenly realized that she had opened this door. And if she was to be honest, it was nice to talk to a woman about all this. She had no sisters. This was a new experience as a cop. She had good friends, but none were cops. She trusted Grace and knew what they discussed here tonight would stay here.

"Yeah. Well, I am not sure that he's something that can be fixed. He's pretty broken. I feel like right now I am his junkie feeding him his Red John fix. Even if we come through that ok, he will want to move on and away."

Dinner arrived with more drinks. Teresa and Grace began to really enjoy themselves. They lived in a very small world. The guys in their unit were great, but they were guys. Cho and Rigsby never had some moron on a date beg to be handcuffed and frisked. Their dates didn't try to prove they were tougher.

They began to swap horror stories. Teresa had gotten burned badly and subsequently, threw herself into her work. She occasionally dated, usually as the result of a fix-up. Random hook-ups never appealed to her and you couldn't always ask a guy back to your place. Watching a date lock up her gun was always a mood killer. Jane was invigorating and sexy, but a broken heart looking for a place to happen. No matter how appealing, she knew she could never go down that road.

Grace had started to date anti-cops. She went for worldly metropolitan types that knew the right kind of wine. They intimidated her, but she at least felt like she learned something. After that mess with Dan, she wasn't sure she would feel safe again in the dating world. That's part of why she was starting to lean toward Rigsby. Besides being really cute and sweet, she knew she could trust him. Dan had broken that trust badly.

Over dinner, these two women shared all of this. A burden shared was lightened. By the end of the night, an unlikely friendship, beyond mentor and rookie was formed. They decided to make this a regular thing. Just something for them.

As they headed toward their cars, Teresa stopped Grace. "I shouldn't ask this, but I gotta know. That kiss? Was it as hot as it looked?"

"Oh my God, hotter. That man's lips are dangerous. Who knew a shy guy like that could kiss so well. It's amazing he's not more of a player. Too bad I can't get another bite of that apple"

Lisbon relaxed. Clearly, Van Pelt had gotten the message. Better than that, Teresa had found a friend in the unlikeliest of places. A little Girl talk had gone a long way.

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**I know you are all out there reading….some reviews would be nice!!**


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